


Enough

by maggs689



Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: M/M, Toronto Maple Leafs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-05
Updated: 2019-02-05
Packaged: 2019-10-22 12:11:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17662403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maggs689/pseuds/maggs689
Summary: Auston is going to ruin a 100 year old hockey franchise because he doesn't think he's good enough to be Freddie's boyfriend.Or, Auston's self-esteem could use a little work.





	Enough

It’s hard for Auston to remember how Freddie got him.

2016 was such a hectic blur. Auston moved to a new city, started his first NHL games, had to get to know a whole team of new guys. He was so focused on hockey that he knew that there would be no time for a personal life. Even if he did have time, he wasn’t ready to subject himself and his sexual orientation to Toronto’s hyper scrutiny. Auston had been playing hockey all his life and knew what hockey guys were like - fratty, loud idiots who called him Matts.

Then he met Freddie, and all of his plans went flying out the window. Freddie was a quiet but powerful presence. He floated through the chaos of the dressing room, gaze flicking from Auston and then away, head down. He kept his own counsel, arranging his goalie pads and heading out to the hallway before everyone else to do his stretches. Freddie tended to the area around his net, oblivious to Auston breezing past him during drills.

By the time the regular season was underway, Auston had charmed all of his teammates. He had elaborate handshakes with his line mates and a fun crew to go out with after games. But it bothered Auston that Freddie didn’t seem charmed, no matter how many times Auston playfully kicked up a shower of snow at him at the end of practice. Auston didn’t like to admit it, but the less attention Freddie paid Auston, the needier Auston got for it. It took Auston parading through the dressing room naked - from the shower to his stall, and back again twice on some false pretense - to get a reaction out of Freddie, even if that reaction was an eye roll.

But Auston had caught Freddie’s eye. Auston could feel Freddie’s piercing stare on his back during practice. When Freddie was close, pressed near him in a crowded bar with the rest of the team after a road win, Freddie’s eyes were quietly on Auston, moving up and down Auston’s body and then lazily looking away.

This went on for weeks. Auston didn’t even know why he and Freddie were playing this silent cat and mouse game anymore. He didn’t know what he wanted to happen next or how to do it, just that something had to give. He was drawn to Freddie, his big shoulders and beautiful, impassive face. Auston thought about Freddie’s face - just his face - late at night when he was alone in his bed. It made him hard but he was afraid to touch himself, to give life to the fantasy. Every night he would try to forget about Freddie but every morning there Freddie was, striding into the arena in a beautiful pea coat, eyes sliding over Auston.

***

Auston lingered in the dressing room after a home game, fiddling in his stall until the room had mostly cleared out in the hopes that he could be alone with Freddie. But when he looked up, Freddie was gone. Auston sighed and headed home alone.

Auston wandered around his condo. He had practice the next morning at 10 and needed to sleep but was too keyed up to go to bed. He tried to settle on the couch to play video games but couldn’t focus.

Auston pulled out his phone and scrolled through Instagram. He saw that Freddie had posted a story twenty minutes ago - some grainy video of tennis on the tv in his apartment across town. Auston angled the phone high above himself with the front-facing camera open and snapped a few selfies. He made sure that he got most of his body in the pics, especially the part of his abs showing where his shirt was riding up above the waistband of his shorts. Before he lost his courage, Auston sent the best pic to Freddie by DM with a kissy face emoji.

Auston threw the phone down on the couch and paced around the apartment. He was headed for the kitchen when he heard the phone ding. He lunged for it and opened his DMs.

 _Yes, baby?_ , Freddie responded.

“What the fuck,” Auston said out loud to himself. Thinking fast, he pulled his shirt over his head and angled his phone high for another selfie, this time shirtless and biting his lip. “What am I doing,” Auston mumbled to himself and he sent the pic to Freddie.

Waiting for a response was nerve wracking. Auston was in the the middle of wondering if this was how the girls who DMed him unsolicited nudes on Instagram felt when his phone dinged again. Freddie had sent back a skull and crossbones emoji. “What the _fuuuuuuuuck_ ,” Auston whispered to himself. Was that a good reaction?

The phone dinged again. Auston looked at his phone and his jaw dropped. Freddie had sent him a pic back. Freddie. Shirtless. In bed.

Auston’s mind was stuttering. One corner of Freddie’s mouth was turned up in a smile and a white sheet was bunched around his midsection near where the pic cut off.

His phone dinged again. A message from Freddie.

 _Goodnight, Aus_.

“Oh my GOD,” Auston yelled to the empty room. He was never getting to sleep tonight.

***

Auston was nervous the next day at practice. He hadn’t been nervous like this since training camp, when everything was new. He tried to stay focused while he dressed for practice but he kept looking over to Freddie’s stall to see if Freddie was looking at him. Freddie’s bag was there but his pads and gear were gone.

“Hey, anybody know where Fred is?” Auston asked his teammates as they took to the ice.

“Don’t worry about Fred,” an assistant coach barked at him, “you’re doing skating drills.”

An hour later, Auston hustled off the ice and to the training room for a pressure point massage on his bad shoulder. When he finally got to the dressing room, it was almost empty and there was no sign of Freddie.

When Auston pulled a change of clothes from his stall, a folded piece of paper fell off the shelf over his head. Auston opened the paper and saw a single line of small, neat handwriting: _Check your phone_. Auston fished his phone out of his bag and opened his messages. His jaw dropped when he saw the pic from Freddie.

In the pic, Freddie was standing in front of a full-length mirror near the showers in the dressing room. He was holding a towel in front of his midsection, but there was another mirror behind Freddie. Auston could see Freddie’s full naked body from behind in the reflection.

“What’s up Matts,” Mitch punched Auston on the arm as he passed on the way to his stall. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

 _No, just Freddie’s amazing ass_ , Auston thought, struggling to make his face as expressionless as possible. As Auston hustled to the shower, he hoped that no one would see that he was semi-hard.

***

Auston walked toward his car in the parking garage and found Freddie leaning up against the driver’s side door.

“What took you so long?” Freddie asked, a smile slowly breaking across his face.

“I had to do my hair,” Auston joked. He came to a stop in front of Freddie and looked up at him. Freddie made him feel small, a feeling that Auston wasn’t used to even among the big men of hockey.

“What do you think you’re doing, Aus,” Freddie murmured. He ran his hand down Auston’s arm and pulled Auston closer to him. Freddie tilted his head to the side and searched Auston’s face. “What is it you think you want.”

Auston bit his lip and didn’t answer. Freddie wasn’t exactly asking questions. He leaned closer into Freddie’s space, trying to touch Freddie’s lips with his but Freddie pulled his head away. Embarrassed, Auston stepped back. Had he read this situation wrong? He could feel the shame burning in his cheeks.

Freddie pushed off of Auston’s car and started walking toward his huge SUV. “Are you coming?” Freddie called over his shoulder. “Let’s go somewhere more private.”

***

As Freddie drove, Auston turned to look at Freddie’s profile.

“I can feel you staring,” Freddie said.

Auston looked away from Freddie. “I wasn’t staring.” Auston tried to still his hands in his lap. Why was he so nervous all of a sudden? He never felt this way when he was trying to make a move on a girl. But something about Freddie intimidated him.

Freddie stopped the car and Auston saw that they were parked in front of Freddie’s condo. “Aus, you’ve been staring since training camp.”

Auston shook his head. “No, I just…,” Auston trailed off.

“Do you send all of your teammates shirtless selfies?”

“Do _you_?,” Auston shot back.

Freddie smirked. “You’ve been teasing me for weeks, Aus. Admit it.” Freddie looked Auston straight in the eye like he was daring Auston to do what they both knew Auston wanted. Auston could move toward him, close the distance and finally kiss Freddie and let happen whatever came next. Auston could take this risk and let himself really fall for Freddie, really be with someone that consumed him, someone who he couldn’t come back from.

Before Auston could decide, Freddie kissed him. Freddie’s lips were warm and sweet, and Auston could hardly believe it when Freddie gently traced his lower lip with the tip of his tongue. Freddie pulled away and got out of the car, leaving Auston hanging mid-kiss. Freddie trotted around the car and opened Auston’s door. “Are you coming up?” Freddie asked with a big smile.

***

Freddie’s bed was big. “I had it specially made,” Freddie said into Auston’s neck where he was sucking on the soft skin and giving Auston goosebumps.

“It’s really nice,” Auston nervously babbled. He couldn't exactly remember how he made it from the car to Freddie's bed or when Freddie had unbuttoned Auston's shirt and slid it off his shoulders.

Freddie kissed Auston deeply and trailed his fingers over Auston's chest. Freddie smiled into Auston’s mouth when Auston gasped at the pressure on his nipples. Auston slid his hand into Freddie's hair and kissed him desperately, trying to retain some control over a situation that was rapidly spiraling away from him.

Freddie hooked one big leg around Auston and pulled him closer. Freddie's big hands roamed all over Auston's body. He pulled back slightly when he felt how hard Auston was pressed against him.

Auston looked down and bit his lip. “Sorry,” he mumbled.

Freddie cupped Auston's face in his hand. “Babe, why are you sorry?”

Auston couldn't explain. He couldn't tell Freddie that he spent his whole life pretending to be confident like everyone expected - star athlete and leader, face of the franchise, Toronto's most eligible bachelor. That underneath all of that he was just a queer kid who had had crushes on so many teammates over the years and had never acted on any of them. Until Freddie.

“I've never um… with a guy,” Auston stammered under Freddie's steady gaze.

Freddie's eyes softened. “You fucking tease,” he laughed.

Auston pouted, half serious and half joking. ‘Don't mock me.”

“I'm not,” Freddie said, pulling Auston close again. “Actually, it's pretty hot.” Freddie looked serious all of a sudden.

“I’ve had sex before, you know.”

“I know,” Freddie said, gently biting at Auston’s neck, “but think of all the new things we can do together.”

***

Getting his cock sucked wasn’t new for Auston, but somehow Freddie made Auston forget about all of the other times. Auston didn’t know how he held out from coming immediately, what with the way that Freddie used his big body to keep Auston in place and that thing that Freddie did with his tongue.

Auston didn’t know how soft a man’s skin could be until he touched Freddie, who had miles of pale skin covered in tiny freckles. Auston couldn’t get enough of the way that Freddie moaned when Auston moved over him. Auston buried his face in Freddie’s neck while he brought Freddie to the edge and over, and kissed him helplessly after, unable to form words for how it felt to have that kind of power over such a beautiful man.

***

Later that evening, Freddie finally had to kick Auston out. “We have practice early tomorrow. You have to go,” Freddie mumbled face-down into the pillow.

“But Fred,” Auston whined. He was propped up on one elbow and was running his hand down the wide expanse of Freddie’s back. When he got to Freddie’s ass, he gave a squeeze.

Freddie lifted his head to look at Auston. Freddie’s curls looked soft in the dim light. Auston kissed him, teasing Freddie with his tongue. “Babe, you have to go,” Freddie moaned. “If I get hard again, you’ll never get to sleep tonight.”

“I like the sound of that,” Auston said. He rolled Freddie over and climbed on top of him, straddling his waist and kissing his neck. Freddie snaked his arms around Auston’s back. He kissed Auston lazily, trying not to notice that Auston was already getting hard again.

“Out, you,” Freddie mumbled, pushing Auston away. Auston rolled off of him, finally resigned to leaving.

“I hate you,” he pouted as he pulled on his pants.

Freddie watched him from the bed. His eyes were sleepy. “I hate you too,” he smiled and blew Auston a kiss.

***

Auston floated through practice. Every pass connected. Every shot went exactly where he wanted it to go. He felt lighter on his skates than he had all season. As he swooped around the rink with his line mates, he looked for Freddie and felt his stomach flip when Freddie smiled at him from across the ice.

Auston couldn’t help but gravitate to Freddie whenever he had a free moment, even if it was only to touch his arm as they passed in the hallway or joke quietly with him as they waited for their drinks out at a bar. On the ice before a game, Auston skated up to Freddie and bumped him with his hip to get his attention. He didn’t care if photographers and fans saw them smiling at each other. They were teammates, right? No one had to know that they’d be making out in Freddie’s car in the parking lot after the game.

Auston kept sending Freddie a steady stream of pics while they were on the road, even if Freddie was just down the table from him at breakfast. He loved to see Freddie pull out his phone and, angling it away from the guy next to him, open a pic of Auston with his cock in his hand. Freddie blushed every time.

Auston wasn’t hiding what was happening with Freddie from his teammates, he just didn’t think it was anyone’s business. He tried not to look at Freddie too much in the dressing room, but sometimes Freddie was shirtless and Auston couldn’t help himself. It did irk Auston how little Freddie seemed to be affected by him when they were in public. Freddie practiced just as hard and didn’t seem distracted. (Auston wasn’t as convincing. He couldn’t score on Freddie for shit in practice.)

***

When they were back home and had a day off, Freddie texted to ask Auston to dinner. The restaurant was fancier than Auston was used to. Everyone in the restaurant knew Freddie - he didn’t even have a reservation but they didn’t have to wait - and Freddie looked so handsome in his light gray cashmere sweater. Auston was a little nervous, so he made up for it by drinking two bottles of wine by himself.

Freddie got them a cab back to his place. They giggled together in the back of the cab, laughing over the look on the snooty waiter’s face when Auston asked for ketchup for his steak. Freddie dragged a giddy Auston into his apartment and propped him up against the island in the kitchen.

“Drink this,” he pushed a bottle of Gatorade into Auston’s hand.

Auston took a sip. He leaned against Freddie, looking up into his face. “You’re so pretty, Fred,” Auston cooed.

“Okay, time to put you to bed,” Freddie sighed.

“No, Fred,” Auston whined. He grabbed at Freddie’s ass with both hands and sloppily kissed along Freddie’s jawline.

“You’re drunk,” Freddie said and hooked one arm around Auston to drag him to the bedroom. “I don’t mess around with guys who won’t remember it the next morning.”

Freddie undressed Auston, batting off Auston’s halfhearted attempts to grope him, and finally pulled the covers over him.

“You’re no fun,” Auston pouted, but as he drifted off to sleep, he was happy. Freddie was so good to him.

***

The next morning, Freddie woke up with Auston wrapped around him like an octopus. He got up to make coffee and came back to bed to find Auston awake, laying naked on top of the sheets.

“Hi,” Auston whispered and bit his lip.

Freddie crawled up the bed toward Auston. “Hi,” he said and kissed Auston. “Wait right there.” Freddie leaned over to the nightstand and pulled out a small bottle of lube. He left it on the bed next to Auston while they kissed, deeper and longer, until Auston was hard and arching up to feel some friction against Freddie. Auston started to whine so Freddie reached down and stroked Auston slowly, pulling a low moan from him.

Freddie positioned himself between Auston’s legs and kept stroking up and down the length of Auston’s cock. He reached down to brush his fingers between the cheeks of Auston’s ass.

“Is this okay?” Freddie paused. Auston nodded quickly and spread his legs further apart. Freddie popped open the lube and poured it on his fingers. “I’m gonna start slow, okay Aus?”

“Yes,” Auston hissed. Freddie slowly inserted on finger into him and Auston squirmed. “Fred, that feels so good.”

Freddie worked another finger into Auston, amazed at how Auston was opening up for him. For his first time, Auston was already fucking himself on Freddie’s fingers like a pro. Freddie sucked a mark into Auston’s hip and pressed deeper into Auston. “What do you want baby,” Freddie cooed and dragged his tongue over to the base of Auston’s cock.

Auston impatiently threw his head back on the pillow. “ _More_ ,” he gasped, lifting his hips up off of the bed. Freddie pushed a third finger in. “Oh god Fred, oh god, oh god,” Auston babbled with his head thrown back. Freddie took all of Auston’s cock into his mouth in one movement. As he sucked the length of Auston, he fucked in and out with his fingers. He could feel Auston’s hole start to pulse around his fingers.

Auston was moaning incoherently. Freddie pulled off and Auston came in great spurts all over himself. When he was done, Auston flopped back against the pillow with his hands over his face. “Oh my god,” he murmured one final time.

Freddie crawled up Auston’s body and knelt over his chest. “Babe, look at me,” Freddie said. He took his slick hand and started to stroke his own cock, keeping unblinking eye contact with Auston. “You look so good,” Freddie whispered. “You took that so good for me.”

Auston licked his lips slowly and Freddie groaned. “I want you to watch me, babe,” Freddie panted. He pinned Auston to the bed with one big hand on his chest. “Want you to watch me come.” Freddie leaned down to kiss Auston. Auston bit at Freddie’s lower lip and licked into Freddie’s mouth, making Freddie growl. “Fuck, Aus, _fuck_ , you’re going to make me come, fuck.” Freddie gasped into Auston’s open mouth, stroking himself faster, drawing closer, until he came all over Auston’s chest.

***

After they cleaned Auston up, Freddie spooned Auston from behind and pulled the covers up over them. “You are so sexy, Aus,” Freddie whispered into Auston’s ear.

“Maybe next time you can fuck me,” Auston said quietly.

Freddie didn’t say anything for a moment. “Well, the thing is, I sort of only do that with people I’m in a relationship with.” Freddie rolled away and closed his eyes.

Auston laid still next to Freddie for what felt like forever. He couldn’t help but feel disappointed. Freddie wouldn’t fuck him because Auston wasn’t his boyfriend and, from the way he said it, Freddie didn’t want Auston to be his boyfriend. Auston had spent months obsessed with Freddie and it felt like he got everything he wanted when Freddie finally noticed him. But the minute Freddie touched him, he realized that he wanted so much more. And Freddie didn’t.

Auston should have known - he wasn’t good enough to actually be Freddie’s boyfriend. He shouldn’t have gotten his hopes up. Just because Freddie flirted with him and hooked up with him didn’t mean that he wanted him.

Freddie was dozing, so Auston dressed quietly and slipped out the door. He didn’t want Freddie to see how disappointed he was.

***

Auston tried to put Freddie out of his head. He wished that meant he could have stayed away from Freddie, but they played on the same team. Freddie was everywhere.

Auston knew that to keep Freddie as a teammate and a friend, he should stop hooking up with him. But Auston couldn’t just go cold turkey on Frederik Andersen. Maybe he didn’t have to let Freddie blow him in the shower after practice, but Auston wasn’t made of stone. He had felt what Freddie could do with his tongue.

He couldn't help thinking about Freddie’s hands and the devilish look on his face when he realized how hard Auston was for him. He couldn’t help but let Freddie pull him onto his lap, and he certainly couldn’t help grinding on Freddie while Freddie whispered filthy things in his ear. When Auston came in his pants, Freddie’s smile was almost too beautiful for Auston to bear. He could only kiss all over Freddie’s face and try not to blurt out something that he couldn’t take back.

There were times it was extra difficult to keep his emotions in check, like when Freddie made Auston tea while they watched Netflix together at Freddie’s place. Seeing Freddie pad around the kitchen in his slippers and collect the tea things was so comforting. Later, when Auston was on his knees in front of Freddie, he was glad that his mouth was full so he couldn’t tell Freddie that he might love him. As a consolation, he took one of Freddie’s hoodies home and wore it to bed. He fell asleep inhaling Freddie’s scent of leather and sandalwood.

***

Things were getting really bad and Auston worried about the next road trip. He’d see so much of Freddie right when he was trying to stop obsessing about him. They’d be going out with the team and there’d be the hotel rooms - all those big lonely beds that Auston wanted to share with Freddie but would be returning to alone.

Things got worse when Freddie disappeared after their first road game. Auston could barely control his panic as he tried to casually ask the guys if anyone had seen where Freddie went, but no one knew. In Auston’s mind, Freddie was out hooking up with someone else and laughing about how stupid it was that some rookie had fallen in love with him. Auston spent half the night sick with jealousy and the other half beating himself up for being so obsessed with Freddie that he ruined his night. If Auston had been holding out hope that Freddie would eventually want him, that night was Auston’s wake up call. He decided that he would stop following Freddie around like a sad puppy, effective immediately.

By the last night of the trip, Auston’s nerves were shot. Against all odds, Auston had two goals and they won the game. They weren’t flying back to Toronto until the next morning so the entire team was headed out to celebrate, Freddie included. Auston started drinking during dinner - did he even eat anything at dinner or did he just drink wine? - and kept drinking at the club after. By the time the guys were crowded into a banquette in the dark club, Auston was at his breaking point. He slid in next to Freddie and tried to lean in to kiss him, in full view of everyone in the club. Freddie leaned away.

“Babe, you need to relax,” Freddie said through clenched teeth.

“I’m fine, _babe_ ,” Auston gritted out, leaning on the last word.

Freddie turned to look at Auston. “You’re drunk.”

“So nice of you to notice, Fred,” Auston huffed. “I know I’m not important to you but it’s nice of you to notice.”

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Freddie asked, trying to look casual because people were starting to stare.

“What’s wrong with _me_?” Auston practically shouted. Mitch looked over in alarm and Auston lowered his voice as far as he could and still be heard over the thumping music. “I don’t get you Fred. I don’t know what you want but I am done hooking up with you like it’s nothing. I’m not like you.”

Auston stood up and started to push his way toward the exit. He didn’t even look back to see if Freddie was following him. But when he got outside, ears ringing in the quiet night air and cold without his coat, he realized that Freddie hadn’t come after him after all.

***

Auston wore sunglasses on the plane home, partly because he was hungover and partly because his eyes were puffy from crying. His teammates must have believed his hangover story because they didn’t chirp him for the sunglasses or for being dead silent all the way home.

Auston headed for bed as soon as he got home, even though it was only 4pm. It was almost dark out anyway and he didn’t want to talk to anyone or do anything. He shoved Freddie’s hoodie onto the floor next to the bed and burrowed under the covers.

Auston slept until midnight, when he got up to get a Gatorade. The light was blinking on his phone but he didn’t want to see any of Mitch’s stupid selfies with the Snapchat dog filter so he turned it off and went back to bed.

***

Auston would have liked to stay holed up in his apartment for a week, but hockey life grinds on and he had mandatory practice the next afternoon.

When he walked into the dressing room, the team fell silent. Auston went to his stall and tried to ignore that they had obviously been talking about him. As he put his bag down, he clocked Freddie sitting in his stall, half of his pads on, glaring at him.

“Hey,” he said quietly to Willie next to him. “What’s going on?”

Willie looked over at Freddie and back at Auston before shrugging.

Auston shook his head and started pulling on his pads and getting ready for practice. He couldn’t fuck up a 100 year old hockey franchise because someone didn’t want to be his boyfriend.

“Let’s go boys, five minutes,” JT said and headed out of the room. No one moved.

“What?” Auston said loudly. “What’s wrong with all of you?”

Mo took a deep breath. “We were just talking with Freddie about what’s been going on between you two.”

“Oh!,” Auston snapped, alarmed that he couldn’t control how high his voice came out. “Isn’t that nice.” Auston whirled around to look at Freddie, who shook his head and looked at the floor. Auston turned back to his teammates. “Well, not that it’s any of your business, but we _were_  fucking around but that won’t be happening _anymore_.”

Freddie banged his palm down on the seat next to him and lunged over to get in Auston’s face. “Fuck you, Auston! It _is_ their business because you’re acting like an asshole!”

Auston tried to say something but Freddie wasn’t finished.

“For the record, Auston, I don’t make breakfast for guys who I’m just _fucking around_ with, and I certainly don’t let them add their terrible movies to my Netflix queue.” Freddie was shouting now. “I don’t give them my hoodie with my number on it! I don’t text them to tell them that I miss them!”

“You didn’t text me that,” Auston mumbled, ashamed that everyone was looking at him.

“I did last night. Or did you not notice because you were too busy throwing a tantrum?” Freddie moved close to Auston and stared him down. “I was never fucking around with you. I was _falling in love with you_.”

The dressing room was silent. No one was breathing.

JT clomped back into the dressing room and huffed, “Guys? We have practice?” When he saw Freddie’s face, he backed out of the room. The rest of the team followed him.

Auston sat down hard and put his head in his hands. He tried to stifle a sob but couldn’t control himself.

Freddie unclipped his leg pads and knelt in front of him. “Aus, I don’t know happened, but I really liked spending time with you and I don’t know, I thought-”

“Oh my god, I’m so stupid,” Auston cried.

“-and I know we were taking things slow, but I thought that was good because we work together and you’re young-”

“No, Fred. I liked spending time with you, a lot,” Auston said between heaving sobs. “But you said - what you said about being in a relationship - I thought you didn’t want me to be-”

“Aus,” Freddie took Auston’s hands.

Auston took a deep breath. “I assumed that you wouldn’t want me.”

“How could I not want you, Toronto’s most eligible bachelor.”

Auston looked up at Freddie, who had a small smile on his face.

“Fred, don’t tease me.” Freddie chuckled, and then grew quiet as he reached up to wipe the tears off Auston’s cheeks. He cupped Auston’s face in his hand. “I was going to wait until the All Star break, and then I was going to take you to California and then we’d make it official.”

“Really?,” Auston said, letting a little hope break through the tension in his chest.

“Really. But why wait? I just want you to promise me one thing,” Freddie said.

Auston nodded quickly.

“I want you to talk to me if something’s bothering you. Don’t just keep it to yourself and then explode all over me and our teammates.” Freddie leaned his forehead against Auston’s. “Talk to me. Okay?”

“Yes,” Auston sighed, starting to feel the warmth flood through his body. How had he gotten so far into his own head that he missed that Freddie wanted him right back? He should have seen that he was worth Freddie, worth this love that he never expected to find with a teammate.

“Ok,” Freddie stood up, pulling Auston to his feet next to him. “Boyfriends?”

“Boyfriends,” Auston nodded, beaming. He dropped his head onto Freddie’s shoulder. “You told everyone that you’re falling in love with me,” Auston sing-songed as he nuzzled Freddie’s neck.

Freddie wrapped his arms around Auston. “You are such a brat,” Freddie said fondly and grabbed Auston’s ass. “Ready for practice, babe?”


End file.
